WAGO appoints Björn Twiehaus as Chief Executive Officer

WAGO has appointed Björn Twiehaus as Chief Executive Officer. He will join the family-owned industrial technology company in September.

Twiehaus succeeds Jürgen Koopsingraven, who has been serving as interim Chief Executive Officer alongside his role as Chief Financial Officer.

The appointment gives WAGO permanent leadership under an executive with experience in the electronics and automotive supplier sectors. Most recently, Twiehaus was Chief Executive Officer of Marquardt Group, a family-owned mechatronics business, after more than two decades in leadership roles at FORVIA HELLA.

At FORVIA HELLA, he led the electronics division as a member of the executive board from 2020. WAGO cited that background, along with his engineering and business training, in explaining his selection.

WAGO makes electrical connection, interface and automation technology for sectors including rail, energy, data centres, manufacturing and commercial buildings. Founded in Germany and still family-owned, it operates in more than 80 markets, with 31 subsidiaries and nine production sites, and employs around 9,000 people worldwide.

The leadership change comes as the company looks to expand internationally. The appointment completes its leadership team, allowing Koopsingraven to return his full focus to finance.

Christian Hohorst, Shareholder and Member of the Supervisory Board of WAGO Group, thanked the outgoing interim Chief Executive Officer and outlined the board's reasoning behind the appointment.

"First of all, I would like to thank Jürgen Koopsingraven, who has successfully led WAGO while serving as both CEO and CFO with great dedication and will now be able to fully focus on his responsibilities as CFO again," said Christian Hohorst, Shareholder and Member of the Supervisory Board of WAGO Group.

"As a family-owned company, we think in generations, not in quarters. Our closeness to our employees and to our customers is what makes us strong. We are delighted to have found in Björn Twiehaus a leader who shares our values as a family business and combines deep technological expertise with international growth experience," Hohorst said.

Industry background

Twiehaus joins WAGO from a part of European industry that has faced rapid change in recent years, from vehicle electrification to software-led systems and supply chain disruption. His recent career has centred on businesses supplying components and systems to large industrial and automotive customers, putting him in familiar territory as he takes over at a manufacturer serving engineering-led markets.

He studied mechanical engineering and also completed a degree in business administration, a combination common among senior executives in Germany's industrial sector, where technical and operational expertise often sit alongside commercial oversight.

For WAGO, the hire also fits a pattern seen among many privately held industrial groups in Europe, where owners often look for Chief Executive Officers with deep experience in technically complex manufacturing businesses rather than leaders from consumer-facing sectors. The emphasis on international growth suggests the board wants continuity in industrial discipline while broadening the company's reach in overseas markets.

Next phase

WAGO traces its history to spring pressure connection technology and has built a global business around products used in critical infrastructure and industrial systems. Those end markets can offer resilience because customers often specify parts based on reliability and compatibility, though they can also involve long sales cycles and high customer expectations.

Twiehaus described the role as a chance to build on the company's existing position.

"WAGO stands for quality, reliability, and pioneering spirit in connection and automation technology. I look forward to shaping the next chapters of this journey together with around 9,000 colleagues worldwide, and to continuing WAGO's development with a strong customer focus and close alignment to our markets," said Twiehaus.